Orchids at work

Orchids at work

Hi again! This Summer (and Fall) have been an incredibly busy time for me. I finally finished graduate school (woo-hoo!), and then proceeded to move three times in three months (not recommended).  The blog posts fell by the wayside while that was going on, but now I am ready to start writing and posting again.  This summer I had the great opportunity to meet and speak at the Long Island Orchid Society, who are some incredibly friendly and knowledgeable orchid enthusiasts.  I picked up some new plants, and I look forward to sharing their flowers you.

For the past month, my orchid terrarium went into storage, while my orchids traveled to occupy my workspace. The change in environment worked better for some of my plants than for others.  The orchids get a lot of natural light from the North-facing window.  So much, in fact, that I burned a few of my phals when I had placed them too close to the glass.  Also the air is much drier here than in my terrarium at home-- I'm watering most of my plants multiple times a week.  

Fresh growth on Dendrobium Burana Sundae

Some of my orchids have really thrived with the change.  Dendrobium Burana Sundae is rapidly growing new leaves.  I've had this orchid for 4 years now, and had no luck in getting it to bloom for me.  Since it seems to be growing so well at my workspace, I think I will be keeping it here even after the rest of the flowers move home with me next month.

New spike on Ctt Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

 Another orchid that is thriving in the new environment is my Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'  This orchid last flowered for me in 2012, and for the first time in 5 years I am seeing the promise of a flower spike forming!

On the other hand, my reliable Phals need to get back to my terrarium as soon as it is ready again.  This is the time of year when the drop in temperatures usually produces a burst of new flower spikes.  But my workplace turns on the heating in the winter, so the phals haven't gotten their signal to start blooming.  

I also have a new Restrepia orchid which has been blooming for me all summer, which I look forward to sharing as soon as its next bloom matures. Be back soon!

Two new growths mature on Ctt Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

     The new growth I posted about in October has matured and fully opened its leaves, as has the growth before that.  The newest leaves are on average an inch longer than the older leaves, and the newest pseudobulb is taller as well.  All signs point towards a healthy growing plant.

     The newest leaf has some physical damage at its tip, which is entirely my fault. Impatient for the leaves to finish opening, I tried prying the two halves apart before they were ready.  Instead, I ended up ripping some of the leaf's tissue.  No serious harm done, though it does mar the look of the foliage.

     Both pseudobulbs opened with sheaths.  The one on the older pb has since dried up, while the newest one is freshly green and (possibly) swollen.  I'll know soon if there's anything to be seen there.

Dried out sheath 

Possibly swollen sheath on newest pseudobulb

Second new growth on Cattlianthe Jewel Box

Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherezade'

     In addition to the nearly mature pseudobulb, and the new growth I recorded one month ago, there is a third pseudobulb that is just starting out.

First sign of new pseudobulb on cattleya

     In other less welcome news, I cut off one of the leaves, because it developed some suspicious spotting at the leaf's base.  Whatever it was, it didn't look like light damage or physical damage, and I didn't want to risk it spreading further.

Suspicious leaf damage

     None of the other leaves have similar damage, and I'll be checking regularly to make sure they stay clean.  Since I don't want to keep using the same fungicide at the risk of breeding resistant fungal strains, I ordered some physan.  This way, if I want treat a plant, I won't be using the same kind of chemical on it over and over again.

     I should probably also wipe down and disinfect my growing area.  I'm not sure when I'll get around to that though.

New pseudobulb on Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

     The new pseudobulb that I first noticed in late March, is now close to mature.  The leaves are already long enough, and they just need to open.  In the meantime, I've spotted a brand new growth along the rhizome.

New growth on cattlianthe

     This new growth is about the size that the other new pseudobulb reached after one month of growth.  If it keeps growing at the same rate, it should be nearing maturity around February or March.  This may be too late for the Spring/Summer bloom cycle, but I don't know enough about how these things work to be certain.  The first new pseudobulb should definitely be ready to bloom in early summer if everything goes well.

Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade' done flowering

Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade' after blooming

     Today, the last of my Ctt Jewel Box flowers was wilted, completing a blooming cycle that lasted just under 5 weeks. There is another sheath, but it is undeveloped, and I have no way of guessing when (or if) those flowers will open.

Leaf damage on cattlianthe

     There is some damage on several of the leaves.  I can't quite tell if the cause is bugs, or sun or cat.  Nonetheless, I moved the orchid back from the windowsill and onto my top shelf under the lights.  In its place, I have both of my oncidiums at the window instead.

Final bloom opens on Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade' inflorescence

Ctt Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

     The third bud opened yesterday.  It's significantly smaller than the first two flowers: width is 3 inches.  However, it's well formed and a deeper red than the others were (moving the orchid to a windowsill while the bud was developing seems to have helped enrich the color).

     I took a few photos in different light conditions, but getting the color to accurately show through was a challenge. (The top picture is about the most accurate)

     There is still a second sheath that hasn't bloomed, but I don't know if or when those buds will start developing.

Assessing the damage: coming home after two weeks away

The orchids were somewhat rearranged when I came back

     I left my orchids in the care of my bf during the two weeks that I was away, with the instruction to water all the mounted orchids every other day, and the potted ones whenever the wooden skewers tried out.  On my return, I found that most of my orchids were happy, a few had thrived, and only one suffered drastic damage.

     The first thing I noticed when I got home was that my orchids were all in different places than where I had left them. Most of this was not a problem, but the wilsonara at the top shelf had its leaves directly up against the lamp, which resulted in some lamp burn.

Sunburn damage on oncidium leaf

    A number of my oncidium and cymbidium plants lost a leaf or two over the last few weeks, but are otherwise fine.  In fact, the only 'casualty' from my two weeks away was my dendrobium victoria reginae.  It lost the one leaf it had, and the new cane growth dried up and died.  It roots are fine, and the canes aren't dehydrated, but I don't know if this particular den will successfully recover.  I ordered a replacement plant for in case it doesn't.

Wrinkling on psychopsis leaf shows dehydration

     The psychopsis looked very dehydrated.  I think in part, it's because I told bf to water it every other day (for simplicity of instructions and to avoid risk of overwatering) and in this case that wasn't often enough.  However, when I checked it's roots, I found that they were all hollow.  This would be no fault of bf's care, but rather the consequence of this plants poor health from the very beginning.  It's spike is still growing, but I don't know whether to expect it to bloom, or if it will survive or not.  In any case, I ordered another psychopsis as a travel companion for the new den victoria reginae.

Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade' flowers going out of bloom

     My cattlianthe flowers were already wilted looking by the time I got home.  They were also far less red than the earlier photos suggested.  Since the orchid was already getting the maximal amount of light it could handle, it must be the temperature which adulterated the blooms' color.  There is a third flower forming on the spike, and I moved the orchid to a windowsill, in hopes that the cooler air would help it develop a deeper red.  I'm not sure how successful my attempt will be however, since the weather is only getting warmer, and the flower bud is already pretty well developed.

New cattlianthe pseudobulb

     The new pseudobulb has nearly tripled in size over the last two weeks. Here is how the growth looked just two weeks ago.

Tolumnia Genting Orange

     Fortunately, my Tolumnia Genting Orange is in full bloom and going strong.  The flowers opened facing every which way, making the blooms hard to photograph.  I'll do a more detailed post on the orchid later.

New roots on Phal Memoria Audrey Meldman 'Mendenhall'

     My phals seemed to thrive under my bf's care, producing tremendous root growth.  For the rest of the orchids that I didn't mention--there were no notable changes.  They had neither grown nor suffered in my two weeks' absence.

     The bottom line seems to be that phals really are good beginner orchids, as they seemed to be the happiest under my bf's care.  My paphs probably come in as a close second, since none showed any signs of stress when I came back.  And finally, the only one of my orchids that really deteriorated, was one that was sickly to begin with.

Did my cattlianthe jewel box 'scheherazade' bloom peloric?

A possibly peloric Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade' bloom

     My boyfriend sent me today a set of photos from the last week.  My tolumnia genting orange is in full bloom (post forthcoming) and the first flower on my ctt jewel box has finally opened.  The timestamp on the photo above dates to May 31.  As I had suspected before leaving (when the flower was only partially open) this bloom is rather messed up.  

     I think the flower is peloric, which refers to blooms that have extra petals in the color and/or shape of the lip.  In this case, the bottom two petals on the flower seem to have the orange markings typically limited to the lip of the ctt Jewel Box, while the wide petal on top (left picture) is a solid red color.

Partially open cattlianthe jewel box flower

   I don't know why the first flower turned out as twisted as it did, but the second bloom seems to be developing a lot more symmetrically, as seen in the picture above.

     Cattleyas are not known for long-lasting blooms, but hopefully the first flower will still be open when I get home in a week, so I can see it to judge with my own eyes.

Growing flower buds on Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

Flower buds on Ctt Jewel Box 'Scheherazade' 4 months after initial swelling of the flower sheaths

     Four months ago, I wrote a post asking if my Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade' was preparing to flower, when I notice some swelling in the sheaths.  In the last four months, mostly without my notice, the sheaths dried up, and the buds within them grew.  The pseudobulb pictured above looks like it will have two flowers which will bloom successively.  Meanwhile the other pseudobulb (and the one that was the first to show signs of bud growth) is lagging far behind.  There is something growing in there, but it is still small and hard to see.  It's possible that bulb will flower later, or it may just as possibly dry up.

Three month old cattlianthe pseudobulb

    The new pseudobulb has made some impressive growth in the past month.  When I wrote about the growth just a month ago, it was barely half an inch long.  The little droplets on the growth aren't water, but actually sap (called honeydew).  It's a sign of healthy, rapid growth, and possibly a response to the bright light.

Pseudobulb growth at 1 and 2 months

     Here's an image I posted a month ago, to show just how much the pseudobulb has grown since then.  It's interesting how conventional wisdom seems to be that cattleyas do not like being repotted (hence the recommendation to wait 2 years between repotting, or even to avoid it altogether by growing the plants on mounts or in baskets).  I guess that most of the advice refers to species cattleyas, which can be more finicky.  Regardless, whether due to hybrid vigor or because I happened to catch the proper timing, my cattlianthe has thrived since I've last repotted it, producing vigorous leaf, bud and pseudobulb growth over the past few months.

Growth on Ctt Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

New pseudobulb after 1 month of growth

     It's now been almost 2 months since I repotted the Cattlianthe Jewel Box, and it has since seemed to establish itself.  The one new pseudobulb has grown considerably in the past month. 

     The wrinkling of the new pseudobulbs seems to have partially reversed.  They now have one permanent wrinkle each, but have otherwise filled back out.

New root peeks out

     I've also noticed a new root poking through the holes in the pot.  I take this as a very positive sign that the roots have adapted well to the repotting and are now growing fresh tips.

     Now if only I could have flowers!

Pseudobulb wrinkling on Cattlianthe Jewel Box

     The past week has been extra busy with school, and as a result I have neglected updating the blog for a bit longer than usual.  My orchids have likewise suffered some neglect; with 4 orchids mounted, and 1 in a vase, my collection is also somewhat more demanding now than it used to be. 

     So now I've noticed wrinkling on the two newer pseudobulbs on my Ctt Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'.  On the one hand, the plant is now potted in fresh very loosely packed coarse media, in a porous pot; the orchid now dries out far faster than before.  I have also been more neglectful of watering.  On the other hand, this may be the collateral of the repotting experience last month.  I'll see if the wrinkling goes away, but it might not. With at least one new root growing, and a fresh pseudobulb growth, I expect that it should be able to adapt to the new conditions, regardless.

New growths abound

new growth on blooming oncidium

     It seems that my orchids have picked up on the spring season, and responded with an abundance of new growth.  Above, is a tiny new growth on my currently budding oncidium noid.  Meanwhile, many other orchids are throwing out new leaves and pseudobulbs galore.

New leaf on phal: with 5 new healthy roots, I'm hoping this leaf won't end up stunted like the last 3 did

hint of new leaf on my slowly developing keikis from the bigger phalaenopsis noid

the start of a new pseudobulb on my Cattlianthe Jewel Box--good omen for repotting success?

Repotting the Cattlianthe Jewel Box 'Scheherazade'

Hollow dried roots

     After noticing several surface level roots dry out and die on my Ctt Jewel Box (formerly 'Slc Jewel Box'), I became concerned with the health of the plant and decided to repot.  Although cattleyas are said to be finicky about repotting, I figured that the orchid wasn't doing much growth currently anyway, so that if there was trouble beneath the surface I would rather find out sooner than later.

Ctt Jewel Box before and after trimming dead roots

     When I removed the orchid from its pot, I was actually pleasantly surprised by the health of its root system.  The root mass was significantly large, and at least half of the roots were in good health.  In the left panel above shows the dark dead roots and the healthy tan ones.  I trimmed away most of the old or dying roots and repotted the cattlianthe into a slightly bigger ceramic pot.  

     I arranged the orchid slightly off-center, so that the two newest pseudobulbs face the middle of the pot, with plenty of room for further growth.  I've heard that cattleya orchids can pout for a long while if their roots are disturbed, so we'll see how successful my repotting has been.  Hopefully the orchid will be happy in its new pot, and I won't have to move it for a while. 

Is my cattleya preparing to flower?

attempting closeup pictures like this really make me want a better camera

    My original goal when buying all my orchids was that I may someday be able to always have at least one blooming at all times of the year.  However, in the 6 months that I've been growing them, I haven't yet had any blooms.  In part, many of my orchids are still in recovery mode.  The two oncidiums and the small phal are recovering from near death.  My paph sanderianum, cymbidium, and den victoria-reginae are still too small to flower.  And two of my orchids (the big phal and the paph) I bought in bloom last summer, and it is too soon for them to bloom again.

     After discounting the sick, the young, and the already-bloomed, I am left with two orchids which may be ready to bloom in then ear future.  One is my angraecum leonis.  The other is my slc 'scheherazade.'

     This cattleya's usual blooming season is in mid-February.  I bought this plant in its healthy adult form, with two flower sheaths on its newest pseudobulbs.  The flower sheaths are a sign that the pseudobulbs may bloom sometime in the future.  While one of the sheaths is completely empty, the other appears to have some new growth inside.  I tried to capture the shadow of that growth in the picture above; the triangle shaped silhouette at the point where the sheath emerges from the leaf and pseudobulb.

     The sheath on the other pseudobulb doesn't have anything like this.  Is that tiny shadow a promise of flowers in a month?  I don't know... but I'll be hoping and waiting.

Ctt Jewel Box "Scheherazade" AM/AOS (C aurantiaca x Lc Anzac)

     At this point, I was the owner of 9 orchid plants: 2 phalaenopsis, 2 oncidium, 2 paphiopedilum, 1 dendrobium, and 1 angraecoid.  Room under my lights was starting to run out.  I had representatives of most of the common orchid subtypes, but I had intentionally neglected the cattleyas.  The catts (also known as corsage orchids) have a very large following, but I just didn't see what the fuss was about.  All the orchid-selling websites seemed to have huge selections of cattleya hybrids, but none of the photographs of those blooms really impressed me.


     I changed my opinion on the catts after seeing a few specimens in person at the botanical garden in DC.  These blooms are often massive, overwhelming the plants.  What looked like messy crumpled flowers on the photographs, were large resplendent blooms in real life.  At that point I decided to give cattleya culture a try.  Enter the Slc 'Scheherazade.'


     I purchased this plant from the same vendor who sold me my den victoria reginae, and my paph sanderianum.  The vendor's nursery was local to New York, and both my previous plants from him had shipped in pristine condition.


     The orchid arrived with two flower sheaths.  Flower sheaths are simply leaf-life growths at the tops of pseudobulbs which indicate that the orchid may bloom from those pbulbs when in season.

sheath #1

sheath #2

     I haven't noticed any change in the plant over the last 2 months, except for one new root near the surface of the media.  However, if all goes well, I may be able to see flowers around February.  I will be monitoring the sheaths for any developments.  

Edit (2/23/12): I came to the understanding that due to taxonomical shakeups in the cattleya genus, the slc Jewel box has been renamed to cattlianthe (ctt) jewel box.  I will refer to the plant by its current name from now on.